Clear and Muddy Loss of Love

North wind blows wolf smoke everywhere

When Nangong Rang was in power, he believed in the theory of destiny, so the number of Tiansi was as many as hundreds of people. After Nangong Jingnv ascended the throne, she ignored this department and never abolished it.

Although these people don't know the former princess as well as Qi Yan, they gathered firewood like firewood, and they deciphered the hidden acrostic on the slate in one night...

The next day, Guan Tiansi handed over the paper with the answers to Nangong Jingnv's imperial case, Nangong Jingnv saw the eight big characters on it, gritted her silver teeth secretly, and tore up the paper on the spot.

Seeing this, the courtiers looked at each other in blank dismay, thinking that the content on the stone slab was ominous, and everyone turned their attention to the Hubu Shangshu.

Why Hubu Shangshu?

Now Xing Jing Fu is still in the period of guarding, and many matters in Zhongshu are handled by Zuo Pushe. Since Pu She has suppressed You Pu She everywhere, the latter can't fight against Lu Boyan, so he simply claims to be sick from time to time and refuses to go to court, and completely hands over the power to Lu Boyan.

But the courtiers all know: His Majesty the Empress doesn't like this Zuo Servant, just because it's not easy to get angry because of the family relationship between the two families. On the contrary, the Minister of the Household Department is the oldest in the court, the most respected by His Majesty, and the most upright. One of the three in one, the courtiers naturally have to pay more attention to the Minister of the Ministry of Households in some major events.

Received the expectant eyes of his colleagues, the Minister of the Household Department really lived up to expectations, and silently came out holding a jade wat: "Your Majesty, the old minister has something to say."

Nangong Jingnu: "If it's about the slate, there's no need to talk about it."

Hubu Shangshu lifted the hem of his clothes and knelt down on the ground: "Even if His Majesty refuses to allow it, I will risk my life to say so."

Nangong Jingnv was almost outraged by the words of the Minister of the Household Department, but this old gentleman managed the Household Department in an orderly manner, and every amount of money, materials, and objects in and out of the warehouse was accounted for.Without his assistance, the court still doesn't know what it would be like. Nangong Jingnv looked at an old man who was older than her father's generation, kneeling there with a head of gray hair, and finally softened her heart: "I forgive you!" You are innocent, rise up and speak."

The two ministers on the left and right immediately stepped forward to help Shangshu Hubu up, and Shangshu straightened his clothes and put the jade wat on his chest: "Your Majesty, why don't you make the contents of the slate public? Great Wei is good, if the prediction is not good, we can take precautions early, Guan Tiansi finally interpreted the content on the stone slab, Your Majesty must not ignore it."

Nangong Jingnu: "It's just a rumor to confuse the public. Everyone can set foot on the frozen river. Maybe it's someone with a heart to play tricks on."

Hubu Shangshu: "Your Majesty's words are wrong..."

So there was another debate in the court hall. Did Nangong Jingnv bite her to death and didn't let go? It dragged on until the time to retreat, and Nangong Jingnv left alone.

These ministers in the court surrounded Guantian Shi, who had no time to escape in the future, and asked him what "God's will" was conveyed on the slate.

Guan Tianshi is just a mere fifth-rank official, how can he withstand the coercion of these adults?

However, he also knew that since Her Majesty the Empress was so repulsive, if he told them directly, it might be a capital offense, so Guan Tianshi only said: "The stone slab is actually an acrostic poem..."

Led by the Minister of the Household Department, the courtiers came to Guantiansi in a mighty way, and connected the first characters of the eight lines of poems into one sentence, and the answer was: the harmony between the dragon and the phoenix can keep peace.

Isn't this the heavens instructing Her Majesty the empress to get married?

Hubu Shangshu is full of energy, looking at the stone slab with a smile on his face, if the dragon and the phoenix are in harmony, peace can be kept, isn't this a good omen?

Hubu Shangshu: "Several Shangshu adults, can I have a gathering at the old man's house?"

In the residence of Shangshu Hubu, several adults reached a consensus that this "dragon" must be found to form a sign of harmony between the dragon and the phoenix...

The Minister of Rites said in embarrassment: "But... this matter still requires His Majesty to nod. I'm afraid we will be blamed if we search for it privately."

Hubu Shangshu: "Your Majesty should have married a long time ago at this age. Women are more difficult than men when it comes to heirs. It can no longer be delayed. Since the late emperor entrusted His Majesty to us, we who are courtiers are considered If you die, you have to help with all your heart! Only under the nine springs can we face the late emperor face to face. Since God has also made a decree, how can we look forward to the future? I will set an example today, and later I will let the Ministry of Households collect all people with the surname Long in the world. For those of the dragon, the horoscope of birth is related to the dragon, and the men of the right age who were born in the 'Dragon Land', it is a big project to collect the information of these people first..."

Minister of the Ministry of Rites: "Since the Minister of the Ministry of Households is high-minded, the Ministry of Rites must also show its attitude. Later, I will call all the painters in the Ministry of Rites and assign them to the Ministry of Households to be dispatched. I will draw portraits of qualified people and submit them to the capital. A suitable opportunity for His Majesty to choose."

……

Nangong Jingnv didn't know that several court humerus had "reached a consensus" behind her back, she was upset and unknowingly went to Qi Yan's side, at this moment Nangong Jingnv was afraid to see Qi Yan...

Nangong Jingnv could feel Qi Yan's uneasiness to some extent, if she let her see something, it would only increase her troubles in vain.

After thinking this through, Nangong Jingnv looked around and saw that no one found herself, so she silently exited the half of the forbidden palace...

Above Luobei Luochuan.

After several days of hard work, the imperial medical team finally successfully developed the antidote, and most of them recovered after taking the antidote to the soldiers. Even so, the loss of the imperial court is still not optimistic. They died in vain as soon as the antidote came out.

Fortunately, Gong Yanghuai brought an army of [-], so the morale of the army would not be disturbed.

Luochuan was already frozen, so Gong Yanghuai took a sunny day and led tens of thousands of people to the ice surface of Luochuan. In the morning, hundreds of soldiers took the lead to go to Luochuan, and used ice chisels to carve out the surface of the river. Some ice holes were made, and they kept stirring with wooden sticks to prevent the ice holes from freezing. The people led by Gong Yanghuai brought wooden barrels and molds.

The original idea of ​​the Ministry of Industry was to pour water into molds to make ice cubes the size of city wall bricks, and then follow Wei's procedure to build city walls, or even city pools...

But through practice, I found that there is no need to be so troublesome. Luobei is very cold, almost to the point where dripping water turns into ice. You only need to pull out a line with a rope, and use the rope as a reference to directly pour water on the river to form a fortification. Use ice bricks instead. There will be sliding, affecting the progress...

After listening to the soldiers' report, Gong Yanghuai waved his hand: "Give up the ice bricks, and directly pour the city wall on the river!"

Soldier: "Yes!"

Ministry of Industry official: "Master Taiwei, wait a minute."

Gong Yanghuai: "What's the matter?"

The officials of the Ministry of Industry bowed their hands respectfully towards Gong Yanghuai, and replied cautiously: "Master Taiwei, I think it is inappropriate to directly pour the city wall on the ice."

Gong Yanghuai: "How do you say that?"

Official from the Ministry of Industry: "Your Majesty, let me tell you, this... In terms of the firmness of the fortifications, ice bricks are safer than direct pouring. Although the ice bricks will slip, you only need to fix them first and then water them underneath. Just let the ice bricks stick to the ice surface. Although direct pouring is fast, it turns the city wall into a whole. If it is impacted by an external force, the loss is far greater than that of a city wall made of ice bricks, and it is extremely inconvenient to repair. If ice bricks are used, once the city wall is damaged, we can immediately repair it with ice bricks."

Gong Yanghuai thought for a while and asked, "If you use your method, how long will it take to build a fortification stretching for hundreds of miles?"

Official from the Ministry of Industry: "It's not easy for lower officials to estimate this."

Gong Yanghuai: "As the saying goes, soldiers are expensive and fast. If you pour a city wall directly on the ice, an ice city or a fortification that stretches for hundreds of miles can be operated at the same time, and it can be completed overnight. Besides... this fortification is just a seasonal defense method. , we can persist for three to four months at most, and we can retire after the thaw in Luochuan. There is really no need to waste too much time on it. Besides, it is freezing cold, as long as the ice If the pouring is thicker, it is not afraid that it will not be strong. As far as I know: there are no trees in Luobei, and it is impossible to make siege logs and ladders.

Ministry of Industry official: "... yes."

Gong Yanghuai glanced at the soldier: "Do as I say!"

Soldier: "Yes!"

……

As Gong Yanghuai said, a fortification stretching for dozens of miles was erected, and it only took three days to complete the fortification!

An ice wall that stretches for hundreds of miles stretches across Luochuan. The city wall is more than three feet high, extremely solid and majestic, and the sunlight shines crystal clear and refracts the brilliance, like a work of magic.

There is a post every five miles on the city wall, and a pavilion every ten miles. The pavilion is used to burn wolf dung. Once attacked, other people can quickly locate their position and rush to help in time.

Gongyanghuai climbed on the ice wall, climbed high and looked far away, seeing a vast expanse.

Gong Yanghuai couldn't help sighing: "Such a miracle, I don't believe anyone can break it! Just wait for the next spring, and the war will be resolved."

Just when Gong Yanghuai was full of confidence, one night, the alarm bell in the city rang...

The city where Gong Yanghuai was located was only ten miles away from Luochuan. He hurriedly put on his clothes and rushed out, grabbed a guard and asked, "What happened?"

Soldier: "The alarm bell rang on the city tower, and the little one doesn't know what happened."

Gong Yanghuai let go of the soldiers, rode on a fast horse and rushed to the city gate. When he climbed up the tower, he saw that the north was full of flames...

Sentinel soldier: "Master Taiwei, fire is on fire in the direction of Luochuan!"

Gong Yanghuai: "Impossible!"

After the words fell, a herald came from the north on horseback, came to the city gate and shouted loudly: "Quickly report to Lord Taiwei, there is an enemy attack on Luochuan, please hurry up, Lord Taiwei, to send troops to help!"

Gong Yanghuai: "Open the city gate and let him in. I have something to ask!"

Soldier: "Yes!"

Gong Yanghuai: "Beat the drums, gather the three armies, and prepare for battle!"

Soldier: "Yes!"

The soldier who rushed over from Luochuan was taken to the city wall. Gong Yanghuai held up the torch and shook it in front of the soldier. Knowing that it didn't matter, it really scared Gong Yanghuai. The soldier's face was as black as charcoal.

Gong Yanghuai: "How many enemies have come and how is the situation in the city? What's the matter with your face?"

The soldier knelt down on the ground and replied: "The enemy launched a surprise attack in the dark. The walls of the city were surrounded by smoke and fire. The battle line was too long. Brothers didn't know where to rush to help. It is difficult to estimate the exact number of enemies. We haven't waited for a response yet. There are countless fireballs falling from the sky, the fireballs hit the city wall and shattered, splashing out black juice, burning black smoke, people who smoked could not open their eyes, Vice General Wang sent a villain to ask the Taiwei to send troops to help, if it is too late I'm afraid the fortifications won't last!"

Gongyang Huai was terrified. Although he had grown a lot these years, it was the first time he had actually been on the battlefield. He raised his eyes to see the monstrous fire in the north, and the flames dyed half of the night red...

Gong Yanghuai collected himself, listened to the sound of the drums, and took a deep breath: "Bring my horse! Order eight thousand cavalry and five thousand archers. Hurry up, the rest will guard the city!"

Soldier: "Yes!"

Gongyanghuai: "Where is the herald?"

Herald: "The end is here!"

Gong Yanghuai: "Send a team to send the battle reports to the neighboring states, tell them to close the city gate quickly, beware of the enemy's sneak attack, and send a [-]-mile rush to the capital, saying that Luobei has changed, please do it early Intend!"

Herald: "Yes!"

With a bang, the gate of the city was opened, and Gong Yanghuai led eight thousand cavalry to rush out of the city in the dark, and then the archers also carried bows and crossbows, loaded with arrows, and followed behind in a square formation. run at full speed.

This riverside city was specially built in the south of Luochuan after Nangong Rang leveled Luobei, and it was only ten miles away from Luochuan.Gong Yanghuai led eight thousand cavalrymen to the top of Luochuan in just a few cups of tea, and the scene was even more shocking when he got closer, but the stretch of fortifications that had just been completed was full of fires, and the flames that stretched for tens of miles dispersed the night , illuminating everything around clearly.

The ram Huailema, take a closer look: this flame is extremely unusual, not only can it burn on the ice, but also just like the soldier who ordered it said: it keeps emitting strands of black smoke!

At this time, the howling north wind was blowing, and all the smoke and dust were blown to the south by the strong wind, even the flames were blowing towards the soldiers with the help of the wind.

The screams were endless, and the soldiers were panicked and at a loss. Who would have thought that an ice city could burn?Not only did the soldiers not expect it, but neither did Gong Yanghuai.

This karma caught all Wei soldiers by surprise.

Before Gong Yanghuai led the cavalry team to set foot on the river, he could already smell the pungent smell in the air. After smelling too much, it made people feel a little dizzy. Gong Yanghuai had to cover his mouth and nose with his sleeves and looked around They are all flames, and they don't know which place to rush to help first...

Adjutant: "Master Taiwei, what should we do?"

Gong Yanghuai's heart was beating like a drum, he had panicked for a long time, and he clenched his fists tightly to force himself to calm down, because he knew that any decision he made could determine the outcome of this war, and tens of thousands of soldiers were involved life and death.

Gong Yanghuai: "Adjutant Li, I will lead a thousand cavalry to the top of the wall to find out. You and Adjutant Zhang will each take half of the remaining 7000 people and go around the fortifications. Arrows launch a counter-charge against the enemy!"

Lieutenant Li: "Yes!"

Gong Yanghuai clamped the horse's belly: "Soldiers, follow me!"

On the other side of the ice wall, on the vast grassland, several figures stood on a wooden chariot.

Standing in the middle, wearing a black iron mask, wearing a black robe, and wearing a white coat is the former princess!

The two brothers Wu Da and Wu Er were dressed in strong clothes, with swords at their waists, and stood on both sides of the former princess like dharma protectors. On the far left is Gucci Bayin, who is more than eight feet tall and powerful.

The scene after that was a bit inconsistent, there was actually a child on this chilling battlefield: Bayin was holding a young boy with curly yellow hair and amber eyes in his hand!It was Xiaodie's eldest son, Qiyan Jinwushu.

Jiya looked at the flames in front of her eyes, the shock in her eyes was fleeting, and she turned into a smiling face in an instant, and said: "Senior used soldiers like gods, not only found a way to conquer the ice wall, but also can be regarded as a big north wind tonight." , this smoky... the people of the Wei Kingdom will definitely not be able to bear it."

Bayin pulled Lajin Wushu, and said boldly: "Look with wide eyes, see how vulnerable the Wei sheep are. Tonight the army will cross Luochuan and occupy the city to avenge your father!"

Jin Wushu: "Yes, Uncle Bayin."

……

The cavalry on the prairie lined up, and the four phalanxes at the rear protected the chariots. In the front of the line, there were hundreds of catapults, each of which was loaded with: hot oil and mixed with Jars of some kind of black liquid were used as cannonballs, and they kept smashing against the ice wall.

Let's talk about the former dynasty, Guan Tiansi said: The princess of the former dynasty came down from the stars in the sky, and she was destined to see all kinds of human beings, and she couldn't stay in one place for a long time.

The old emperor loved his eldest daughter very much, and bestowed a gold medal to make arrows, allowing her to travel around the world, and draw the silver of the Huangzhuang within the territory at will.

The princess of the former dynasty was also an elegant scholar who was fond of mountains and rivers when she was young. She took the Wu family brothers to various places, and even went to the grassland with the help of Luochuan ice, where the former princess accidentally discovered a black swamp full of thorns. smell.

The princess of the previous dynasty ordered the brothers of the Wu family to take some black juice and bring it back to the palace for research. She thought that maybe the water in the black pool might have some kind of medicinal properties that could be used as medicine, but she didn't want to accidentally discover the extremely flammable properties of this black juice. , and black tobacco shreds will emerge during the burning process, with a pungent smell.

The princess of the previous dynasty recorded a sum in her travel notes, and then gradually forgot about this matter.

A while ago, the princess of the former dynasty was forced to go to Luobei to seek refuge with Bayin, and met Jiya under the recommendation of Bayin. The princess of the former dynasty gave Jiya a secret record, which recorded a large number of methods of making siege equipment. They talked in secret all night.

Afterwards, the princess of the former dynasty became a military advisor. There were no trees growing on the grassland, so the princess of the former dynasty suggested that the city built by Nangong Rang be demolished to obtain wood and stone.

After Luochuan was frozen, Ji Ya suddenly went to the former princess angrily, and said that Wei State had built an ice wall on the river!What can I do?Even if they don't fight now, the envoys from the south will come next spring and find that the city is so much smaller...how to explain it?

The former princess lurks to the Luochuan River under the leadership of Ji Ya. When she sees the ice wall, she suddenly thinks of the black water pool she saw in the early years. After ordering people to investigate, the black pool is still there, and she takes a lot of black juice from it. , mixed thermal grease, and cooperated with the catapult to launch this fire plan...

The black juice really did a great job, it was directly attached to the ice wall and burned...

The fire has been burning for almost half an hour, with black mist and white smoke, this ice wall fortification stretching for tens of miles still cannot withstand the high temperature of the fire and begins to melt...

However...the stone throwing continued, and the whole ice city was crumbling.

Even though the archers who came later climbed onto the city wall, they couldn't see where they were going because of the large amount of water vapor and black smoke, and couldn't carry out an effective attack.

After looking over, Ji Ya said to the masked man, "Senior, the archers from the Wei Kingdom seem to have arrived."

The masked man sneered, and replied: "The furthest range of the bows of the Wei State is only 120 paces even for those born with supernatural powers, but if they occupy a high ground, they will not be far away against the wind. And the furthest range of the Wei State's crossbows can only be catapulted 150 paces." There are at least [-] steps for your troops to go to the river, so as long as you don't attack rashly, you will not be able to do anything."

Jiya: "Senior has a great plan!"

The princess of the former court: "The flame of this black juice cannot be extinguished even with water. Besides, it is freezing cold and dripping water turns into ice. Where did they get the water? Wait until the ice city is almost burned... then push the cart up, Overthrowing this wall will be a flat river, and it depends on your ability to fight with the close army."

Without waiting for Ji Ya to speak, Bayin took over the conversation and replied: "Don't worry, Mr. Benedict, we have [-] iron cavalry, and it is no problem to annihilate the sheep of Wei State. When the ice city falls, I will personally lead the troops to kill them. Wei State sheep will be wiped out in one fell swoop!"

The ice city melted into water, part of it was transpired by the flames, and the other part overflowed to the channel of the city wall and quickly froze under the action of the strong wind, filling the artificially polished hemp ice surface and turning it into a smooth ice surface. The water stains made the soldiers unable to stand on the city wall at all.

The city walls and city piers were becoming thinner and shorter at a speed visible to the naked eye. The soldiers were completely panicked, and they had completely lost their morale before they started fighting.

The most frightening thing was that the fireball that fell from the sky hit some of the soldiers in the city, and the soldiers burned on the spot. No matter how the people around them beat them, it was useless, and they could only watch helplessly as their companions were burned to death.

The addition of archers did not change the one-sided battle situation. Several soldiers held large shields to protect Gong Yanghuai. The latter was also in a panic and almost fell several times.

What is the best way at the moment?Ram Huai doesn't know...

He has a soaring arrow in his arms, as long as the archer shoots it, the cavalry on both sides will charge towards the enemy, at least it can destroy the enemy's catapult...

But how many enemies are there?

Are seven thousand cavalry enough?

Could it be that once this arrow is shot, those soldiers will not be able to come back?

The north wind was howling, and in such a cold weather, Gong Yanghuai was sweating profusely, and was blown by the wind from head to toe.

Soldier: "Master Taiwei, what should we do, this ice wall may not last long!"

Gong Yanghuai swallowed, and made an extremely difficult decision: "Ming Jin withdraws troops, everyone immediately retreats from the ice wall, and all return to the city to refuse to defend!"

In the end, Gong Yanghuai still couldn't bear to bet the lives of [-] soldiers for a chance of victory.

The tight gongs could not stop ringing. Under the protection of the soldiers, Gong Yanghuai took the lead to get off the city wall, rode on a fast horse and led the people to retreat, while the two teams of cavalry who had already bypassed the defense line heard the sound of the gongs, They also retreated one after another.

The masked man listened attentively and said, "Wei has withdrawn its troops."

Bayin: "I'll take people to chase after me!"

The masked man raised his hand to block Bayin: "Don't chase after poor bandits. This time, all the elite troops from the Wei Kingdom are here. Linjiang City is only a few miles away, and they will be able to return to the city soon. Now that they have returned to the city, before You should also change your tactics. Once the imperial army occupies a favorable location, it is impossible for you to attack. This Linjiang city was built to resist the grassland people. The city is more than three feet high and two feet thick, equipped with a large number of troops Once the city defense equipment is entangled by them, it will lose the opportunity to make a surprise attack."

Bayin was confused, but he felt that what the benefactor said must be right, so he stepped back and asked, "Then... what should we do?"

The masked man unhurriedly took out a pair of sheepskin scrolls from his bosom, unfolded it, and saw that it was a map of the prefectures and cities of the Wei Kingdom...

Bayin raised the torch, and Ji Ya also surrounded him. The masked man clicked three times on the map, and then outlined these three points to form a triangle shape.

Masked man: "Linjiang City, Jiaojun, Luoshui County...these three cities are at the same angle, but Linjiang City was built later and is much stronger. Jiaojun and Luoshui County are just border towns. The city is not only low, and there are not many equipments to defend the city, but also because the city is too small to accommodate too many garrisons, only some people need to stay here and continue to use catapults to attack the ice wall, using the fire to attract the attention of the enemy , the remaining troops were divided into two groups, one to the southeast and the other to the southwest, to take Jiao County and Luoshui County. Here again..." The masked man pointed at a three-point intersection of a post road: "In this Ambush a strong army. Once Linjiang City gets the news, no matter which side you choose to help, it will definitely pass through here. At that time, you will wait for your work and give the reinforcements a head-on blow! One night, plus rushing cars, is enough to break through these two cities. Although the city is small, it is the rear of Linjiang City, and it is still an important traffic route. As long as these two cities are tightly strangled, Linjiang City will be an isolated city. The daily food and grass consumption of tens of thousands of troops is astonishing. Confined... It won't be long before they can't hold on, and they will take the initiative to attack in vain to kill the way out, and then give them a hard blow."

After hearing what the former princess said, Jiya thought for a while, and asked, "Since the disadvantages of these two cities are so obvious...can our people defend them?"

The masked man was a little surprised, and he glanced at Ji Ya approvingly: "Use the way of the other to turn against the other... You can use the method of pouring water to cast ice to raise the city wall. I am afraid that the imperial army will not be able to capture any city." We have to go all out... If so, we can come to encircle Wei and rescue Zhao, and the troops from another city will directly attack Linjiang City, so that the imperial court will suffer from the enemy."

Ji Ya asked again: "Then what should the imperial court do if reinforcements come?"

The masked man: "You only have one month, and it's the end of the new year. Even if the imperial court sends troops to help, it will take a month at the earliest to deliver the military order, and the army will be deployed... You must capture Linjiang City, Linjiang City in a month's time. Not only is it strong, but it is also backed by Luochuan. It can receive grassland supplies in winter, and Luochuan melts without worrying about being attacked. Only by occupying this important military town can we hope to conquer the Central Plains step by step!"